


The Great Bank of Harandoth

by shopfront



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Bank Robbery, F/F, First Meetings, Future Fic, Getting Together, Kissing, Missing Scene, Moving On
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-17 06:32:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12359568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shopfront/pseuds/shopfront
Summary: Christina searches and waits to find that little blue box again, but the pilot she finally finds isn't exactly who she expected.River finds herself drifting a little aimlessly after seeing the Singing Towers of Darillium. How lucky, then, that she stumbles across someone who's prepared for anything.(Future fic for Christina, and a missing story for River between - in her timeline - The Husbands of River Song and Silence in the Library)





	The Great Bank of Harandoth

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ideare](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ideare/gifts).



Christina spent rather a lot more time cultivating a network to look for strange blue boxes than she'd originally expected to when she'd started looking. Sometimes she wondered whether it was worth it. Calling in favours wasn’t exactly outside the realm of her expertise, but she also wasn’t practiced at doing it while on the run with a recognisable face. 

She’d always quite liked being able to introduce herself as Lady Christina, even if she preferred adventurous thievery to any of the other silliness that came with the title. But the media was quite enchanted with the idea of an aristocratic thief. Flying bus or no, it was making keeping a low profile rather difficult. Not to mention, no matter what she did to try and ensure that she only had a very high quality of eagle-eyed person engaged in searching on her behalf she still seemed to get a suspicious number of false alarms.

This one, however, finally didn't look like a false anything.

It was still there when she arrived, and stood unassumingly in a side street. In fact, it looked fairly wedged between two buildings in what would have otherwise been the only decent hidden vantage spot. But it was near the corner at least, so Christina found another dark slip of a place in the cross-street, and settled in to wait.

And wait.

And wait some more.

Finally someone approached the police box instead of hurrying past in favour of the light and bustle of the next street along. With a heartfelt groan of relief and frustration, Christina scooped up her backpack and darted after them.

“You’re not The Doctor,” she said a few minutes later as she emerging from the shadows behind them just as they turned their key in the lock.

“Hello,” said the woman as she pushed open the door. “I was wondering if you were going to introduce yourself.”

Christina looked her up and down, and the woman smirked and reclined in the doorway with a quirk of an eyebrow in response. “Lady Christina de Souza,” she said eventually, holding out her hand.

“Oh, a Lady!” the woman said, jerking fully upright with a wide grin and then turning Christina’s offered hand sideways to delicately kiss the back of it. “How intriguing!”

Then she turned and disappeared through the door while Christina stared after her.

“Well, come on in if you’re going to,” the woman called out a moment later, her voice echoing unexpectedly. But when Christina shrugged and followed her inside the echo suddenly made all the sense in the world.

“It’s-“ she started to say, eyes wide as she took in the size of the room beyond.

“Don’t say bigger on the inside,” the woman interrupted, pulling levers at something that looked like it might be a control system. “I hate it when they say that. He loves it, of course, but that’s men for you.”

“Alright,” Christina said, kicking the door shut behind her and dropping her backpack by it. “What would you like me to say, instead?”

“Whatever you like,” she said, looking amused but also entirely unconcerned with Christina’s presence.

“But…,” Christina started to say. Then she shook her head with a smile and took the stairs behind the woman at a brisk jog. “You know, I do believe you failed to give me _your_ name.”

“Professor River Song,” the woman said, tossing another smirk over her shoulder. “And you might want to hold on tight to that railing by you there. Normally I pride myself on a smooth ride, but today I’m aiming at a storm, so. What can you do, really?”

Christina had just barely tightened her grip on the railing in question when they were sharply jolted. “What on earth-”  but then suddenly she yelped as the whole room tilted drastically and her feet slid out from under her. Her backpack came barrelling down from where the door was now positioned almost directly above them. It only narrowly missed them both in the process and it made her gasp again and twist her body sharply to the side to be out of its path.

“Good thing I invested in a properly padded bag,” she muttered, dangling above it and watching closely as it clanged against another railing and then spun out before coming to rest against the opposite wall - or was it floor, now?

Christina chuckled, surprising herself. Then she let it grow into a full blown laugh even as she started contorting herself to try find more leverage than just a single railing.

She could see River carefully braced against parts of the console, perfectly balanced while still furiously pressing buttons and pulling levers without giving so much as a hint that her position felt precarious. They jolted again and Christina lost what little purchase she had regained. Her feet slipped and she fell back into her original dangling position with a whoop that made River look over at her with a bright grin.

“Having fun?”

“Absolutely,” Christina said, leaning into the swing to widen the movement. Then she let go of the railing entirely and used her momentum to reach and grab hold of one closer to River instead. “What _are_ you doing, and could you possibly do something about this hanging in mid-air problem we seem to be experiencing while you're at it? I normally wouldn’t be too bothered by it to be honest with you, but I seem to have momentarily misplaced the necessary equipment.”

“It’ll just be a few more minutes. I’m afraid I’m rather busy trying to land us during an interstellar typhoon, so-”

“Land us? What do you mean ‘land us’? When did we start flying?”

River’s lips just quirked. “I did tell you I normally pride myself on a smooth ride,” was all she said, still working her way across the console in deft movements that belied the need to keep herself from falling off it at the same time.

Christina gaped. “He said this was a ship, but- are you telling me we were already moving before the whole change in gravity thing or whatever that was?”

River made a lilting noise of agreement, and then pressed one last button with a flourish.

“Brace yourself,” was all she said. But before Christina could ask what for everything had turned itself back to rights and she was hitting the actual floor with a thump.

“Well,” she gasped, panting hard for breath while her lungs and diaphragm caught up from the blow. “That was certainly… interesting.”

“Is that a good thing?” River asked, offering her a hand up.

Christina took it with groan, and let River pull her to her feet. “Well, it’s never a bad thing,” she said, still slightly breathless from the drop and also from how close together she now realised they were standing. River’s eyes twinkled at her, and there was something about the expression on her face. Something very familiar.

“You’re enjoying this, too,” Christina said softly, mindful of the distance - or lack of - between them.

“Always,” River said with a smirk, before whirling away. “Well then, the Great Bank of Harandoth waits for no woman! Are you coming?”

Christina furrowed her brow. “Bank?” she asked, starting to grin. “That sounds intriguing. What business do you have with a bank of… what did you call it?”

“Who says I have business with them?” River asked huskily, raising an eyebrow when Christina just smiled even wider. Then she crooked a finger before heading for the door.

“Wait for me!” Christina called. She bit her lip and then ran to the back of the room to retrieve her backpack before she followed River out the door.

*

“You never did tell me why you have the box,” Christina huffed, once she’d caught up with River. “Where is the Doctor? Or is it your ship? He did mention that he stole it….”

“Or perhaps there’s more than one,” River said. “Or perhaps I’m borrowing it.” She shot Christina a sidelong glance, eyes dancing, and then she grabbed her by the hand and whispered ‘run’ and so they did.

“What are we running from?” Christina asked, fighting down the joyful feeling bubbling in her chest. She needed her breath for running, not more laughing.

River laughed freely beside her. “Security!”

“Ah,” Christina panted, then yelped when River suddenly stopped and yanked her sideways through a door before pushing her up against it. “Just like old times, then.”

A cascade of footsteps drew closer. It was more of a slap slosh noise than the sharp clip of heels that Christina was used to but otherwise it seemed very familiar, and then the footsteps had safely passed and drawn away from them again. River didn’t move from her position pressed with her ear against the wood of the door, and Christina held tightly between it and River.

“Though it is a little cosier,” Christina murmured in River’s ear. She felt rather than heard River’s laugh this time as it vibrated deliciously through her.

“If you think this is fun, wait until you see the vault,” River whispered back. Christina swayed towards her, as much as she could sway when pressed so tightly against something.

But just as quickly as she’d pulled Christina inside the room, River had darted away again. “We just need to make it twenty stories down without being spotting again, and then we’ll be practically home free,” she said. Even though Christina felt the absence of pressure like a confusing sort of ache, she still forced a smile and swung her backpack down to open it.

“What exactly do we need to do to get down twenty levels in a place like this?” she asked, already rummaging for tools, “and what are we here for, anyway?”

River shrugged. “This and that. It’s not my usual thing, working without a specific target in mind. I’m actually rather excited to see what we come across! Oh and I don’t suppose you have a blowtorch in there by any chance?”

Christina frowned, and then changed the direction of her rummaging to unearth a small case which she opened. “How about this?” she asked, holding out a mini-blowtorch.

“Wonderful,” River said, eyes lit up as she reached for it and then turned and strode away. “That will do nicely.”

Christina just followed her, a slightly bemused expression on her face.

*

It was a thrill to follow River into the bowels of the vaults and then back up again. A thrill when River pressed her up against another door and kissed Christina in full view of a security contingent, and then used the distraction to lock them away on the other side of it. A thrill to run laughing through the hallways together until they were back outside under a strangely coloured alien sun. A thrill to dodge security all the way back to that familiar blue door, and to listen when aliens banged useless on it from the outside.

It was all the best bits of travelling with the Doctor and it was also nothing like travelling with the Doctor.

Then suddenly it was exactly the same.

"That was wonderful," Christina sighed, leaning against the inside of the TARDIS door as River prepared to depart the planet. She watched and smiled as River flicked more levers and pressed more buttons and then turned and smiled back. "Huh. Flying this thing looked a lot less simpler than that last time."  
  
"Storm's cleared," River said, sounding smug.

"Where can we go next?" Christina asked, pushing off the door. As she walked forward she felt her smile falter. River didn't look quite so pleased with herself all of a sudden. Then she turned back around and busied herself with buttons and levers again, without actually pressing anything, and Christina knew something was definitely wrong.

"We'll return her to where we found her."

Christina frowned. "You mean this ship? Okay, and then where do we go? Do you have a ship of your own?"

"No," River said shortly as she moved around the console. "No, I don't."

"Alright," Christina said slowly. "So exactly how are we going to get around then?"

"We aren't." River came to halt on the other side of the console. She didn't look up from a display she was scrutinising, but she had stopped pressing controls again. "I'm terribly sorry but I'm afraid I can't do this."

"Do what?" Christina asked, half sure she already knew the answer and half still hoping that this time it would be different.

"Travel," River said, then took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face. "At least, not anywhere that you can follow."

Christina tried to muster outrage or sadness or some scrap of a convincing argument that had so failed her last time. But when she opened her mouth to speak, she instead found herself examining the look in River's eye and closing her mouth again.

"I had fun," she said as they stepped back outside and River locked the door behind them. "Thank you."

"Thank _you_ ," River replied. She seemed to hesitate, but only for a split second and then she turned and was gone.

Christina's phone dinged. She pulled it out and looked at the screen, and then looked at her watch.

Six hours or ten seconds.

Either way, it still felt like it should have been longer.

*

There was a knock on her front door late one night. The only surprise when Christina opened it was her complete lack of surprise at seeing River.

“Hello,” River said.

“Hello,” Christina echoed, stepping aside and holding the door wider. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon,” she said after River had shaken the snow from her coat and boots and then made her way down the hall to the much warmer sitting room Christina had pointed her towards.

River frowned at the window which showed snowflakes still slowly falling, and then frowned at Christina. “It’s snowing,” she said.

Christina felt her lips quirk up against her will and quickly tried to smother it. “Yes.”

“It was the middle of July when we went to Harandoth.”

“It was,” Christina agreed, arching an eyebrow and tilting her head. "Like I said. I didn't expect you so soon."

Understanding rippled across River’s face, and she smiled ruefully. “Ah. May I?” she asked, gesturing.

Christina nodded. Then she asked if River would care for tea, but River just silently took a seat without answering. After a moment Christina joined her and sat watching River stare at her hands.

“I needed some time,” she said suddenly, looking up so fast her hair nearly whipped Christina in the face.

“Yes, you mentioned that. Right before you dropped me off when you said you’d lost someone,” Christina agreed. “I’ve heard that before from people with blue boxes.”

River smiled, but mostly just looked sad. “Hazard of the occupation, I suppose.”

“Of time travelling?” Christina ventured after a moment, still watching River closely. 

“Oh, no. I’m an archaeologist.”

Christina frowned and opened her mouth, then blinked and shook her head. “Have you had enough time, now?

“Well it’s certainly been more than six months for me, let me tell you,” River said half to herself, then shook her head and looked back to the window with a sigh. Christina sat back and waited. “I won’t see him again, or… I might. I nearly did the day we met, actually. But I knew I shouldn't really,” she said slowly, quietly. Then she seemed to gather herself up, and she turned to Christina with purpose in her gaze. 

“So you decided to rob a bank without a plan?”

River stared at her and Christina stared back, and then they both broke down laughing at the same time.

“It seemed like the thing to do at the time,” River chuckled breathlessly. “You showed up, and I suppose I just wanted a bit of fun.”

Christina bumped their shoulders together. “I can understand that,” she said, then stood. “Would you like that tea?”

“That sounds lovely,” River said, then suddenly shivered and rubbed her hands together. “I think I just about froze solid on your doorstep.”

Christina smiled once more, and then ducked into the small kitchen. It wasn’t anything fancy. Certainly nothing like she was used to growing up. But it was warm and it was inconspicuous, and it was hers - something and somewhere that nobody had thought of looking for her. No one except River. Not yet, anyway.

She had the tea things laid out by the time the kettle boiled and called out, “milk and sugar?”

“Surprise me,” River answered. Only instead of calling back from the lounge her voice was soft and came from behind Christina. It made her jump a little, then she blinked and carefully set down the sugar spoon before turning. Christina narrowed her eyes speculatively, but River just stepped closer.

“Surprise me,” River repeated, and after a long look Christina leant in and kissed her.

She wasn’t sure if that was quite the surprise River had intended, but some reckless part of her didn’t care. Besides, River’s lips were curving up deliciously into a smile underneath her own.

“That’s more like it,” River murmured into her mouth, before pressing closer and kissing her back.

Some time later, Christina wrenched herself away. "Just promise me one thing," she panted, the kettle long gone cold behind them.

"Anything," River said. Her eyes were bright once more, and she was already reaching for Christina again.

"Next time, we go in with an actual plan," she said, laughing as River tugged her close without seeming to pay any mind to her words. "It's - mmph - bad enough being wanted by the authorities on one planet."

"But that's the half fun, dear," River said in a voice low enough to make Christina shiver as she let herself be reeled back in properly.


End file.
